Lozier honored at CMBC luncheon

May 5, 2011

A Borger High School teacher received special honors during the Coffee Memorial Blood Center Annual Donor Recognition Luncheon in Amarillo Tuesday afternoon.
Mary Lou Lozier was honored with CMBC’s Lifetime of Service Award. She and several of her student council members from BHS were in attendance at the luncheon.
Lozier became involved with CMBC when she volunteered to be the blood drive coordinator for the BHS blood drives.
“High school blood drives are tough to manage, but she has never backed down from the challenge and she’s been doing it for 21 years!” Suzanne Talley of CMBC said. “Instead, she has the drives down to a fine art.”
Lozier and the student council officers plan two to three blood drives each year, which result in approximately 120-150 units per year along with many first-time donors adding to the donor pool.
“She encourages these young people to adopt the tradition of giving for their families,” Talley said. “We can truly say that Mary Lou Lozier goes above the call of duty by making such a positive difference among young people in Borger and in the lives of patients within the High Plains Region. We extend a tremendous thank you to this special lady for her compassion, her generosity, and her dedication to others.”
Lozier said she feels it is important to give back to the community and does so by coordinating the drives at BHS. However, her reasons for getting involved are also personal in nature.
“I have such a debt of gratitude to blood donors because my father is a blood recipient,” she said. “He spent months in the hospital and required blood transfusions due to a bacterial infection that claimed both of his arms and part of his feet.”
She said without the superior medical care he received at Baptist St. Anthony’s Hospital and the blood that was available, he would not have survived. Lozier also extends appreciation to her student councils, past and present, for their hard work on these drives.
“I also want to thank all the BHS student council officers and members over the last 21 years for supporting me in the privilege of giving to such a worthwhile cause,” she said.
Talley said Lozier has truly been an important part of the work that CMBC does and the center feels fortunate to have had her as part of their team for so long.
“Borger High School is blessed to have Mary Lou Lozier and so is Coffee Memorial!” she said.